Hello readers! I would like to thank Sefirosa and yukino76 for reviewing the previous chapter plus NightCrow712 for favoriting Skater Shadowing! Thank you very much! I really appreciate it!

Yep yukino76! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own any aspect of Naruto or Crisis Core. They belong to their respective owners. I only own this and every other story I have.


"Hey! Don't leave me out!" A tall well-built man who had sky-blue eyes as well as spiky black hair with several bangs framing the sides of his face and was dressed in a dark blue uniform-like outfit, gloves, and boots ran up to the newcomers, waving wildly. Upon stopping before the three, he beamed brightly. "Hey there! My name is Zack Fair and welcome to Wutai!"

Cloud face-palmed. "Omae..."

"It's nice to meet you Naruto, Sasuke, Itachi! Aerith told me all about you guys and I just couldn't wait to meet you all!" Ignoring the Strife, the more-than-enthusiastic guy shot his arm out, more excited than ever.

The Uzumaki was the first to take the offer. Putting his stuff down, he accepted the offered hand. "It's nice to meet you—AAAAHHHH!"

"YEAH!" Let's just say Zack shook Naruto's hand so hard that he actually shook Naruto himself. Like a sheet. At the end of it all, whirling swirls had replaced the dazed's eyes. Let's just say neither Uchiha brother wanted to shake hands with the Fair after seeing that stunt.

Face met palm. Again. "Oi. How many times have I told you not to underestimate your strength..." Something had caught Cloud's eye, something all three had that had not been there the last time he had saw them. He quirked a brow. "Where the heck did you get those tattoos?"

"This is the Fairy Tail Guild Mark and we got these while visiting Fiore!" Naruto beamed as he showed the sigil off. The excitement seemed to aid in his recovery from his vertigo.

The Strife sighed. "Whatever. I won't ask any more about it."

"Whoa! Those are so cool!" Once again, Zack eagerly bounded toward the trio. Blue eyes sparkled as they took the markings in. "I can see the head, wings, and tail! This is so awesome!"

The Uzumaki beamed brightly. "I know, right?!" It appears he had forgotten about the trauma the other had put him through. Nice.

"I agree." The Gainsborough giggled. "It's really neat and tidy."

Sasuke tched. "As for the people that mark represents—"

"Teme! Don't be rude!" Naruto barked.

Itachi chuckled. "I think what he means is that most of the people of Fairy Tail get into brawls whether with those in or out of the guild." A smirk crossed his lips. "I remember Natsu-kun saying 'battles are my specialty' during the preliminary round of the Grand Magic Games." He shrugged. "I won't be surprised if there are more people like him within Fairy Tail."

"That's exactly what I meant." Sasuke scoffed.

Blue eyes rolled. "Okay, okay—" Realization suddenly dawned on Naruto. "Hey...are Squall, Tidus, Yuna, Tifa, Onion Knight, and Vaan also here? What about Sora, Riku, Roxas, Axel, and Yuffie?"

"Nope." Aerith shook her head. "All of them are still in either Traverse Town or Fushichō—"

A shaking of the head cut her off. "You're wrong. One of them is here with us too—"

"You called?" Guess who?

Cloud sighed. "...Tifa."

"That's my name!" The Lockhart cried. Brown eyes fell upon the visitors. "Hey! Nice to see you again!"

Naruto beamed. "Same here!"

"Sure." Sasuke grunted.

Itachi smiled. "Likewise."

"You guys still haven't put your stuff away?!" It was at that moment the three remembered their luggage. Not that that they could grab it seeing as a certain raven-haired lady swooped in, doing it for them. "Come on! Let's go!" And she sped ahead, not slowed down by the extra weight she carried.

A cloud of dust bellowed in her wake. Zack whistled. "Cloud, you sure are one lucky dog."

"Do you have a death wish?" That heated glare oozing with murderous intent stopped the guy short, all humor vanishing from his features as he broke out into a cold sweat.

Even though Naruto wasn't the target of the death glare this time around, he still felt like he was roasting on the ground in a slow, painful manner which would make the eternal inferno of hell look like heaven. "EEEEP!"

"What?" Cloud quirked a brow, as though he was genuinely confused as to why the Uzumaki would—or should—be utterly mortified. Has he ever seen his own glare?

Itachi decided to intervene at that moment. And thank goodness he did. "We need to tell Tifa-san which room to go to."

"I don't want to have to look all over for my luggage." Sasuke snorted.

Blond brows shot through the roof. "Oh right!" He bolted to the entrance of the hotel. Thank goodness he didn't have extra weight on him; he could run faster. "Wait up!"

"...You." The Strife sighed as he made to follow, the rest walking with him.


"Whew! And we're done!"

It was a miracle upon miracles Naruto was able to catch up to the speeding ridiculously strong girl. With that, he was able to tell her where to go. If the Uzumaki hadn't braced himself, Tifa would have knocked him over with how fast she whirled around and sprinted in the opposite direction.

The thing is, that super-speed applied to more than just running; the Lockhart unpacked every bag and suitcase so fast that if they hadn't known any better, they would have thought their stuff had been left open for quite a bit of time. When had she gotten so fast?!

Anyways, after the unpacking had ended, it was time for dinner. The group went down to the little café within the establishment. Let's just say several mouths dropped wide open and eyes popped out of several skulls upon witnessing a certain someone scarf down twenty huge bowls of miso ramen with extra pork.

"What the heck is happening?!" Cloud gaped. "Has a demon possessed him?!"

Aerith did not know what to say. "This is...interesting."

"He eats like this practically every breakfast and dinner." Sasuke face-palmed again and again and again and again. "He is trying to eat his way into the grave."

Cloud joined in on the face-palming. "Or win a race to obesity."

"You read my mind." Kindred spirits, huh?

But wild cheering from a not-so-sane person had them both staring at him. "Go Naruto go! Go Naruto go!" Guess who?

"Zack..." Cloud face-palmed. Again. "Do you want to encourage him to basically commit suicide—"

A hand to the mouth shut him up. "Don't listen to him!" Tifa joined in the cheering. "Eat! Eat like no one's watching!" And that he did.

"You..." The Strife was not amused. Despite being covered, the frown was more than a little obvious.

With his mouth overflowing and bulging with noodles, the glutton grinned. "I will!" How the noodles didn't go down the wrong pipe and didn't choke him is a mystery upon the greatest of mysteries.

"How can you..." Sasuke suddenly shot from his seat. "I need to use the bathroom." And he all but bolted in the direction of said place. Why did he have to go? Why did he indeed?

Itachi sighed as he made to go after his precious little brother. "If you will excuse me..." And then he was gone.

"I hope they will be okay..." Brown brows scrunched in concern.

Tifa was the opposite of Aerith at the moment as she stood up, wide grin on her face. "Guess what tomorrow is?"

"It's Christmas!" Zack exclaimed. The two shared a high-five.

Blue blew out of proportion. "Oh right..." The three had been so busy either fighting humongous threats or helping others in need that Naruto forgot all about that! Let's just say the shock had not gone unnoticed by one.

"Deck the halls with boughs of holly

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

'Tis the season to be jolly

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

Don we now our gay apparel

Fa-la-la, la-la-la, la-la-la.

Troll the ancient Yule-tide carol

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la."

Zack began singing way off-key and a little-too-loudly. But he was quickly joined by another.

"See the blazing Yule before us.

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

Strike the harp and join the chorus.

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

Follow me in merry measure.

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

While I tell of Yule-tide treasure.

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la."

Aerith started the second verse, all smiles. Both she and Zack continued on with another.

"Fast away the old year passes.

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

Hail the new year, lads and lasses

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

Sing we joyous, all together.

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

heedless of the wind and weather.

Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la!"

Tifa was a nightingale as she hit all the notes perfectly with vibrato adding even more expression to her melodious voice.

Once the last note finished, the three burst into laughter and exchanged several high-fives. Let's just say several people stared at the weirdos who sang a Christmas carol at the top of their lungs, although two were better than one. Guess who?

But there were two exceptions: one who was face-palming over and over again...and one whose face was practically frozen in place.


"What are you doing here?"

After the embarrassing—according to a certain serious blond—spectacle and the Uchiha brothers returned, they finished dinner before splitting up for the night. However, only minutes after the Uzumaki had returned to his room, knocking on the door caused him to jolt from his bed. Just who could it be?!

After opening the door, Naruto knew who. Cloud. "Judging by your expression earlier, you forgot to get Christmas presents. Is that true?"

"Maybe..." He hung his head in shame. "It's that I've been so busy that I didn't remember—"

A raised hand silenced him. "I heard about what you three did at Fiore and Tophet. You must have had your hands full."

"What are you doing here?!" Naruto echoed his prior question only with more confusion and urgency.

The Strife tched. "I'm going out to get a present myself. I can take you with me."

"You forgot too?!" A mouth dropped wide open.

However, only a scoff met him. "I didn't forget. I had to...save up some money." A red tint appeared on Cloud's cheeks for several moments. However, it vanished seconds later. "You coming?"

"Yeah! Thanks!" Life saved.


"Whoa..."

The place the two blonds went to was no convenience store or even a supermarket; it was far more fancy than the aforementioned places combined. It was a large mall on the fancy end of town. Why would they be in such an ornate store to buy presents?! Why did Cloud go there?! Unless...what he was getting was quite expensive for quite the important person.

The Strife grunted. "Look around. I have a place I need to be at." He vanished seconds later. As though he had teleported away. How strange...

"Okay." Naruto did as he was told. He wandered through the floor they were currently at.

At that moment, Kurama leapt from his jacket. "So you're looking for presents, huh?"

"Oi! What happens if someone else had seen you do that?!" The Uzumaki cried in a not-so-quiet shout-whisper. "You aren't supposed to animate just anywhere!"

The fox scoffed. "Oh please. I didn't smell anyone else nearby for quite some distance, more than enough for me to do as I please unseen. Also, I didn't sense any security cameras."

"I'm not sure animals are allowed here though." Naruto was clearly skeptic. And rightfully so.

That warranted another scoff. "I can pretend to be a stuffed animal while I sniff out where you should go." The creature gave a nod. "This will allow you to save time, which will come especially in handy since Cloud probably doesn't want to be kept waiting for long."

"That's a good point." The blond conceded. He sighed. "Alright. Do your thing."

Snorting, Kurama leapt onto Naruto, draping itself across his shoulders before freezing all its muscles. As though it became a giant plushie that appeared maybe a little too realistic. "Go here." The Uzumaki walked in the direction the kitsune suggested. After several turns and corners, they ended up at a certain place. There, a violet enigma possessing a cryptic visage sporting golden hues above striated armor that covered four arms which held a crossbow that seemed to be made of the blackest of flames and one similar to the first except for being red, being covered in crimson cloth, being more human-like, and wielding a scarlet gourd in one hand and a blazing shield in the other met him.

"Both of these are variations of the storm god of the Shinto religion, Susanoo. He is the brother of the sun goddess Amaterasu and the moon god Tsukuyomi as well as being the son of Izanagi, a deity born of the seven divine generations in Japanese mythology." Naruto spun around to face an associate who had approached him. "Susanoo is married to Kushinadahime, the goddess of rice, and in more recent times has become associated with love and marriage."

Blue eyes widened. "Really?!" He made up his mind in an instant. "I'll get them!"

"Great choice." The person beamed. "Each is 1159.49 yen, so it's 2318.98 yen total please."

After several moments, Naruto gave a reluctant nod. "...Okay." He didn't have much money of his own, but it didn't matter; both Itachi and Sasuke mattered to him. Quite a lot in fact.

"Follow me please." And then they headed for a cashier. After paying the required amount, the Uzumaki walked away. With Kurama's help, he was able to find presents for everyone else.

With that, he headed toward Cloud. It would be a good idea seeing as the Strife was his ride and he didn't want to keep the guy waiting. With the canine's nose, finding him was a cinch. Cloud stood in front of a jewelry place, talking to a woman who worked there. "I'm ready—"

"These 1.00 ct. t.w. Diamond Stud Earrings in 18kt White Gold will cost 254408.32 yen. Is that alright with you?" The lady inquired.

A firm nod was given. "I want these. I have enough to pay for them."

"Okay." With one swipe of the debit card, the Strife received what he came for. All in a nice black box and gift wrapped with a neat bow to top it all off. For the occasion of course.

A smile crossed her face. "Are these for your girlfriend?"

"No." A head shook.

That smile only grew wider. "Your fiancée?"

"No." Second shake.

That wide smile grew into a grin. "Your wife?"

"No." Third. Three strikes and you're out.

A brow quirked. "Then who are these earrings for? They're very expensive and are usually given to someone who is very dear to the buyer."

"This person is dear. Very dear in fact." From where he hid behind a nearby pillar to not-so-subtly spy on the transaction, Naruto's jaw dropped wide open. Had he heard Cloud right?!


Translation: Omae=You

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